Various off-road and on-road vehicles include booms. For example, certain concrete pump trucks include a boom configured to support a passage through which concrete is pumped from a base of the concrete pump truck to a location at a construction site where the concrete is needed. Such booms may be long and slender to facilitate pumping the concrete a substantial distance away from the concrete pump truck. In addition, such booms may be relatively heavy. The combination of the substantial length and mass properties of the boom may lead to the boom exhibiting undesirable dynamic behavior. In certain booms in certain configurations, a natural frequency of the boom may be about 0.3 Hertz (i.e., 3.3 seconds per cycle). In certain booms in certain configurations, the natural frequency of the boom may be less than about 1 Hertz (i.e., 1 second per cycle). In certain booms in certain configurations, the natural frequency of the boom may range from about 0.1 Hertz to about 1 Hertz (i.e., 10 seconds per cycle to 1 second per cycle). For example, as the boom is moved from place to place, the starting and stopping loads that actuate the boom may induce vibration (i.e., oscillation). Other load sources that may excite the boom include momentum of the concrete as it is pumped along the boom, starting and stopping the pumping of concrete along the boom, wind loads that may develop against the boom, and/or other miscellaneous loads.
Other vehicles with booms include fire trucks in which a ladder may be included on the boom, fire trucks which include a boom with plumbing to deliver water to a desired location, excavators which use a boom to move a shovel, tele-handlers which use a boom to deliver materials around a construction site, cranes which may use a boom to move material from place to place, etc.
In certain boom applications, including those mentioned above, a hydraulic cylinder may be used to actuate the boom. By actuating the hydraulic cylinder, the boom may be deployed and retracted, as desired, to achieve a desired placement of the boom. In certain applications, counter-balance valves may be used to control actuation of the hydraulic cylinder and/or to prevent the hydraulic cylinder from uncommanded movement (e.g., caused by a component failure). A prior art system 100, including a first counter-balance valve 300 and a second counter-balance valve 400 is illustrated at FIG. 1. The counter-balance valve 300 controls and/or transfers hydraulic fluid flow into and out of a first chamber 116 of a hydraulic cylinder 110 of the system 100. Likewise, the second counter-balance valve 400 controls and/or transfers hydraulic fluid flow into and out of a second chamber 118 of the hydraulic cylinder 110. In particular, a port 302 of the counter-balance valve 300 is connected to a port 122 of the hydraulic cylinder 110. Likewise, a port 402 of the counter-balance valve 400 is fluidly connected to a port 124 of the hydraulic cylinder 110. As depicted, a fluid line 522 schematically connects the port 302 to the port 122, and a fluid line 524 connects the port 402 to the port 124. The counter-balance valves 300, 400 are typically mounted directly to the hydraulic cylinder 110. The port 302 may directly connect to the port 122, and the port 402 may directly connect to the port 124.
The counter-balance valves 300, 400 provide safety protection to the system 100. In particular, before movement of the cylinder 110 can occur, hydraulic pressure must be applied to both of the counter-balance valves 300, 400. The hydraulic pressure applied to one of the counter-balance valves 300, 400 is delivered to a corresponding one of the ports 122, 124 of the hydraulic cylinder 110 thereby urging a piston 120 of the hydraulic cylinder 110 to move. The hydraulic pressure applied to an opposite one of the counter-balance valves 400, 300 allows hydraulic fluid to flow out of the opposite port 124, 122 of the hydraulic cylinder 110. By requiring hydraulic pressure at the counter-balance valve 300, 400 corresponding to the port 122, 124 that is releasing the hydraulic fluid, a failure of a hydraulic line, a valve, a pump, etc. that supplies or receives the hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic cylinder 110 will not result in uncommanded movement of the hydraulic cylinder 110.
Turning now to FIG. 1, the system 100 will be described in detail. As depicted, a four-way three position hydraulic control valve 200 is used to control the hydraulic cylinder 110. The control valve 200 includes a spool 220 that may be positioned at a first configuration 222, a second configuration 224, or a third configuration 226. As depicted at FIG. 1, the spool 220 is at the first configuration 222. In the first configuration 222, hydraulic fluid from a supply line 502 is transferred from a port 212 of the control valve 200 to a port 202 of the control valve 200 and ultimately to the port 122 and the chamber 116 of the hydraulic cylinder 110. The hydraulic cylinder 110 is thereby urged to extend and hydraulic fluid in the chamber 118 of the hydraulic cylinder 110 is urged out of the port 124 of the cylinder 110. Hydraulic fluid leaving the port 124 returns to a hydraulic tank by entering a port 204 of the control valve 200 and exiting a port 214 of the control valve 200 into a return line 504. In certain embodiments, the supply line 502 supplies hydraulic fluid at a constant or at a near constant supply pressure. In certain embodiments, the return line 504 receives hydraulic fluid at a constant or at a near constant return pressure.
When the spool 220 is positioned at the second configuration 224, hydraulic fluid flow between the port 202 and the port 212 and hydraulic fluid flow between the port 204 and the port 214 is effectively stopped, and hydraulic fluid flow to and from the cylinder 110 is effectively stopped. Thus, the hydraulic cylinder 110 remains substantially stationary when the spool 220 is positioned at the second configuration 224.
When the spool 220 is positioned at the third configuration 226, hydraulic fluid flow from the supply line 502 enters through the port 212 and exits through the port 204 of the valve 200. The hydraulic fluid flow is ultimately delivered to the port 124 and the chamber 118 of the hydraulic cylinder 110 thereby urging retraction of the cylinder 110. As hydraulic fluid pressure is applied to the chamber 118, hydraulic fluid within the chamber 116 is urged to exit through the port 122. Hydraulic fluid exiting the port 122 enters the port 202 and exits the port 214 of the valve 200 and thereby returns to the hydraulic tank. An operator and/or a control system may move the spool 220 as desired and thereby achieve extension, retraction, and/or locking of the hydraulic cylinder 110.
A function of the counter-balance valves 300, 400 when the hydraulic cylinder 110 is extending will now be discussed in detail. Upon the spool 220 of the valve 200 being placed in the first configuration 222, hydraulic fluid pressure from the supply line 502 pressurizes a hydraulic line 512. The hydraulic line 512 is connected between the port 202 of the control valve 200, a port 304 of the counter-balance valve 300, and a port 406 of the counter-balance valve 400. Hydraulic fluid pressure applied at the port 304 of the counter-balance valve 300 flows past a spool 310 of the counter-balance valve 300 and past a check valve 320 of the counter-balance valve 300 and thereby flows from the port 304 to the port 302 through a passage 322 of the counter-balance valve 300. The hydraulic fluid pressure further flows through the port 122 and into the chamber 116 (i.e., a meter-in chamber). Pressure applied to the port 406 of the counter-balance valve 400 moves a spool 410 of the counter-balance valve 400 against a spring 412 and thereby compresses the spring 412. Hydraulic fluid pressure applied at the port 406 thereby opens a passage 424 between the port 402 and the port 404. By applying hydraulic pressure at the port 406, hydraulic fluid may exit the chamber 118 (i.e., a meter-out chamber) through the port 124, through the line 524, through the passage 424 of the counter-balance valve 400 across the spool 410, through a hydraulic line 514, through the valve 200, and through the return line 504 into the tank. The meter-out side may supply backpressure.
A function of the counter-balance valves 300, 400 when the hydraulic cylinder 110 is retracting will now be discussed in detail. Upon the spool 220 of the valve 200 being placed in the third configuration 226, hydraulic fluid pressure from the supply line 502 pressurizes the hydraulic line 514. The hydraulic line 514 is connected between the port 204 of the control valve 200, a port 404 of the counter-balance valve 400, and a port 306 of the counter-balance valve 300. Hydraulic fluid pressure applied at the port 404 of the counter-balance valve 400 flows past the spool 410 of the counter-balance valve 400 and past a check valve 420 of the counter-balance valve 400 and thereby flows from the port 404 to the port 402 through a passage 422 of the counter-balance valve 400. The hydraulic fluid pressure further flows through the port 124 and into the chamber 118 (i.e., a meter-in chamber). Hydraulic pressure applied to the port 306 of the counter-balance valve 300 moves the spool 310 of the counter-balance valve 300 against a spring 312 and thereby compresses the spring 312. Hydraulic fluid pressure applied at the port 306 thereby opens a passage 324 between the port 302 and the port 304. By applying hydraulic pressure at the port 306, hydraulic fluid may exit the chamber 116 (i.e., a meter-out chamber) through the port 122, through the line 522, through the passage 324 of the counter-balance valve 300 across the spool 310, through the hydraulic line 512, through the valve 200, and through the return line 504 into the tank. The meter-out side may supply backpressure.
The supply line 502, the return line 504, the hydraulic line 512, the hydraulic line 514, the hydraulic line 522, and/or the hydraulic line 524 may belong to a line set 500.
Conventional solutions for reducing these oscillations are typically passive (i.e., orifices) which are tuned for one particular operating point and often have a negative impact on efficiency. Many machines/vehicles with extended booms employ counter-balance valves (CBVs) such as counter-balance valves 300, 400 for safety and safety regulation reasons. These counter-balance valves (CBVs) restrict/block the ability of the hydraulic control valve (e.g., the hydraulic control valve 200) to sense and act upon pressure oscillations. In certain applications, such as concrete pump truck booms, oscillations are induced by external sources (e.g., the pumping of the concrete) when the machine (e.g., the boom) is nominally stationary. In this case, the counter-balance valves (CBVs) are closed, and the main control valve (e.g., the hydraulic control valve 200) is isolated from the oscillating pressure that is induced by the oscillations. There are a number of conventional solutions that approach this problem, that typically rely on joint position sensors to sense the oscillations (i.e., ripples) and prevent drift due to flow through a ripple-cancelling valve. Some solutions also have parallel hydraulic systems that allow a ripple-cancelling valve to operate while the counter-balance valves (CBVs) are in place.